weed hallucinations

Do People Get Hallucinations with Medical Cannabis?

Medical cannabis is now being used for many different serious ailments – everything from reducing nausea when receiving chemotherapy treatment to treating anxiety and depression within the context of treating a state of Ohio qualifying condition. Its calming and relieving effects have also been touted as a good alternative to opioids, which are causing an alarming death rate across the country.

This treatment from the cannabis plant is used as a relaxant, an appetite stimulant, and a pain reliever to quell severe and deep pain. Medical cannabis is therefore immensely helpful for people with advanced AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) and cancer to reduce pain and keep weight on.

Medical cannabis does have a few side effects, and some people do experience hallucinations – but this is rare. Let’s talk about medical cannabis and how it might help treat your severe pain or chronic health symptoms.

weed hallucinations

Can Medical Cannabis Cause Hallucinations?

Because of its historic and direct connection with recreational marijuana, which is not processed and treated for medicinal use, people may assume that medical cannabis has all of the same bad effects. However, this new medical treatment has been specially formulated with CBD to help people reduce their levels of physical pain and mental anxiety when dealing with illnesses and chronic conditions.

Some of the hallucinogenic effects do affect some people, but it is not usually reported by patients who develop THC tolerance by starting low dose, using CBD containing medications, and going slow. The beneficial effects supersede the negative impacts, which are usually fairly minimal.

That said, it is important to note that patients who are receiving this treatment should never drive while under its influence. To be safe, always ask someone else to drive or use a driving service instead, such as a Taxi or Uber.

What Can This Treatment Relieve?

Scientifically, the THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) found in cannabinoids does not activate the same receptors in the brain as do other hallucinogenic drugs. Hallucinations due to medical cannabis are therefore most likely a result of other factors, taking high dose THC  without first developing tolerance, or with a history of psychotic illness, or taking it with other hallucinogenic drugs.

Medical cannabis is prescribed to patients by a doctor based on a careful examination and evaluation. History of substance abuse or psychiatric disorders will be checked in order to avoid complications.

Substantial evidence from animal research and a growing number of studies in humans indicate that marijuana exposure during development can cause long-term or possibly permanent adverse changes in the brain. Rats exposed to THC before birth, soon after birth, or during adolescence show notable problems with specific learning and memory tasks later in life. Cognitive impairments in adult rats exposed to THC during adolescence are associated with structural and functional changes in the hippocampus. Studies in rats also show that adolescent exposure to THC is associated with an altered reward system, increasing the likelihood that an animal will self-administer other drugs (e.g., heroin) when given an opportunity

Medical Cannabis for Chronic Pain Treatment in Fairborn, Ohio

If you are suffering from chronic pain, chronic inflammation, nausea, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or cancer, medical cannabis can provide relief from what you are feeling. At InteCare Medical Clinic, we can help make medical cannabis part of your complementary therapy to treat your chronic health condition and lessen your pain.

Find out how medical cannabis can make a difference in your life and help you experience less pain, less anxiety, and an improved appetite so you can finally start to maintain a healthy weight again. This is a holistic type of medical treatment that is a good alternative to addictive opioid treatments.

If marijuana is consumed in foods or beverages, these effects are somewhat delayed—usually appearing after 30 minutes to 1 hour—because the drug must first pass through the digestive system. Eating or drinking marijuana delivers significantly less THC into the bloodstream than smoking an equivalent amount of the plant. Because of the delayed effects, people may inadvertently consume more THC than they intend to.

Pleasant experiences with marijuana are by no means universal. Instead of relaxation and euphoria, some people experience anxiety, fear, distrust, or panic. These effects are more common when a person takes too much, the marijuana has an unexpectedly high potency, or the person is inexperienced. People who have taken large doses of marijuana may experience an acute psychosis, which includes hallucinations, delusions, and a loss of the sense of personal identity. These unpleasant but temporary reactions are distinct from longer-lasting psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia, that may be associated with the use of marijuana in vulnerable individuals.

THC’s chemical structure is similar to the brain chemical anandamide. Similarity in structure allows the body to recognize THC and to alter normal brain communication.

weed hallucinations

Endogenous cannabinoids such as anandamide (see figure) function as neurotransmitters because they send chemical messages between nerve cells (neurons) throughout the nervous system. They affect brain areas that influence pleasure, memory, thinking, concentration, movement, coordination, and sensory and time perception. Because of this similarity, THC is able to attach to molecules called cannabinoid receptors on neurons in these brain areas and activate them, disrupting various mental and physical functions and causing the effects described earlier. The neural communication network that uses these cannabinoid neurotransmitters, known as the endocannabinoid system, plays a critical role in the nervous system’s normal functioning, so interfering with it can have profound effects.

Marijuana use can lead to the development of problem use, known as a marijuana use disorder, which takes the form of addiction in severe cases. Recent data suggest that 30% of those who use marijuana may have some degree of marijuana use disorder. People who begin using marijuana before the age of 18 are four to seven times more likely to develop a marijuana use disorder than adults.

1 thought on “Do People Get Hallucinations with Medical Cannabis?”

  1. justarandomgirl420

    Canadian medicinal cannabis patient here. Speaking from personal experience I can say that some of the hallucinogenic effects do affect some people, but it is not usually reported by patients who develop THC tolerance by starting low dose, using CBD containing medications, and going slow. The beneficial effects supersede the negative impacts, which are usually fairly minimal.

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